Essay About Maha De Carnival And Various Percussion Instruments

Maha De Carnival by Sigman and Bonfa – Analysis
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In “Maha De Carnival” by Sigman and Bonfa I feel there are two musical ideas. From the beginning of the song until about 1:19 idea A is played. The rhythm is repeated by various percussion instruments while a more flowing melody is played by brass, woodwind, and keyboard instruments. At 1:20 an improvised solo which sounds like a saxophone is played and I believe that this is where idea B begins as well. During the saxophone soloist the melody changes and the notes seems shorter and sporadic. The saxophone solo continues to 2:19 and is immediately followed by a piano solo which I feel carries on with the same idea B. Percussion instruments continue with the melody while the piano also plays an improvised solo. The piano solo continues until 3:18 and after that is joined by the rest of the ensemble. For the remaining part of the song idea A is played. Unity is illustrated by the fixed and steady beat that is played at the same dynamic throughout the song. The timbre from the percussion instruments contributes to the variety of this piece. While Im not too familiar with sounds, I would like to think these percussion instruments included maracas, guiro, and conga drums. Another contribution to variety was also the different pitches played especially during the piano solo because they ranged from high and low. This piece is definitely meant for an ensemble and not a soloist because I dont feel one person alone could achieve the many sounds you hear during this piece. “Maha De Carnival” for me is similar to the style of jazz due to the improvised solos. The purpose of the piece could be for dance. When I first listened to it I immediately thought the beat was very catchy and it makes you want to get up and dance. Being a jazz lover I think this can allow anyone to “groove” to the music. Its not too fast and it wasnt too slow, but its enough to make you want to get out on the dance floor. The connotation for me in this piece is Latin or Salsa dancing. I can imagine myself being in a dim light venue dancing the night away with my partner. This was a very enjoyable piece that I can listen to over and over again!